1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic apparatus, a drive mechanism and a drive control method for a front panel and in particular to a drive mechanism and a drive control method for a front panel of electronic apparatus such as AV apparatus, audio apparatus and a car navigation system mounted on a vehicle including an automobile.
2. Description of the Related Art
Related art drive mechanisms for a front panel include those shown in FIG. 8A and FIG. 8B. Electronic apparatus 101 equipped with the drive mechanism is incorporated into for example the instrumental panel in front of the gap between front seats of an automobile, and arranged below the line of sight of the driver sitting in the driver's seat and the crew member sitting in the seat next to the driver and offset from both crew members.
The drive mechanism for the electronic apparatus 101 is arranged to drive a front panel 107 so that the front face of the front panel 107 equipped with a display 103 and an operation section 105 faces upward, for the purpose of efficiently utilizing the front face of the electronic apparatus 101. For example, the drive mechanism exposes the front face of the electronic apparatus 101 in forward direction by vertically driving the front panel 107 to form an inlet for a recording medium such as a CD thus efficiently utilizing the front face of the electronic apparatus 101.
The left and right ends of the front panel 107 are supported slidably and rotatably by a pair of left and right drive mechanisms 111L, 111R provided on a support frame 109. The sliding/rotating operation allows the front face of the front panel 107 equipped with the operation section 105 and the display 103 to rotate upward.
The front panel 107 is electrically connected to electronic apparatus main unit 113 via a flexible flat cable 115. Thus, the front panel 107 can be activated even when it is rotated vertically.
However, in the drive mechanism of the related art front panel mentioned earlier, the front panel 107 is connected to the electronic apparatus main unit 115 via the flat cable 115. Thus the direction the front panel 107 is driven is restricted, as shown in FIG. 8B.
That is, because the front panel 107 is connected to the electronic apparatus main unit 115 via the flat cable, it is difficult to drive the front panel in a direction other than the vertical direction, thus restricting the drive direction and preventing the visibility of the driver and the crew member in the seat next to the driver.